If you’ll not give our workers a decent wage just let us do it
MP plea for Hammond budget
David Linden, MP for Glasgow East, has said he wants al l employees, including those under 18, to earn the Living Wage Foundat ion rate – currently £8.75 an hour – by 2022.
He said: “The UK Government should raise their National Living Wage to the real Living Wage and extend it to all workers.
“They are failing young people across the country with their refusal to budge on this issue.
“Millions of families have suffered from falling wages and squeezed incomes under the past decade of Tory austerity. The Chancellor now has a chance to reform the Living Wage and ensure a fair and equal system for all workers.
“It’s completely unacceptable that young workers are being discriminated against because of their age with no account being taken of their needs, responsibilities and living costs.
“If the UK Government will not act on this, powers should be devolved so that the Scottish Government can introduce a real Living Wage for all workers in Scotland.”
Under current Government legislation, workers over 25 are entitled to a National Living Wage of at least £7.83 an hour.
However, those aged 21 to 24 are entitled to just £7.38 an hour, those aged 18 to 20 get £5.90 an hour and under-18s just £ 4.20 an hour whi le apprentices receive just £ 3.70 an hour.
Although the powers to set the minimum wage remain reserved to Westminster, the Scottish Government claim they have taken steps to ensure that more than 1000 employers now pay a real Living Wage north of the Border.
Amazon’s billionaire owner Jeff Bezos has announced a big rise for staff across the UK, including at bases in Fife and Inverclyde, that will take them above the real Living Wage rate.
The move came after the Sunday Mai l highlighted a Scottish Government pledge to cut grant payments unless they met the Liv ing Wage Foundation recommended amount. In the US, ex-presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has campaigned over Amazon wages, including tweeting our story to his millions of followers. SNP Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has demanded the UK Government deliver on a pledge to end austerity in the Budget. He has called for a “meaningful uplift” in the funding of public services.
Mackay also repeated calls for a refund on VAT charges imposed on Scottish emergency ser v ices and for the UK Government not to impose fees on EU citizens applying to live permanently in the UK after the UK leaves the EU.
Mackay said: “The Prime Minister recently announced she would bring an end to austerity and I want to see this delivered.
“This statement must be backed up by concrete actions. I urge the Chancel lor to ensure he produces a Budget that ends austerity, boosts the economy and properly invests in public services in Scotland.”